This invention is in the field of agricultural seeding equipment, and in particular devices for clearing trash from the ground surface to permit effective working of the ground such as seeding, fertilizing, and the like.
Tillage has been much reduced in modem agriculture in order to reduce costs, conserve moisture, and so forth. Seeding without tillage, or no-till seeding, has become common and preferred by many for crops such as grains, oilseeds, and pulses grown on the prairies of North America. These crops typically are grown in narrow rows, from 6 to 12 inches apart.
Both disc and hoe type furrow openers are popular for no-till seeding as each have their own advantages. The performance of both disc and hoe types is best where crop residue such as straw and chaff, commonly referred to as trash, is light and evenly spread. Where trash is heavy, the disc may ride out of the ground. The discs can also push straws into the ground, a common problem called xe2x80x9chair-pinningxe2x80x9d. Hoe type openers often gather straw between them as they proceed along the field, causing plugging.
Modem furrow openers also commonly include depth control wheels that maintain a constant depth of penetration into the soil, providing proper seed depth for optimum germination and growth. Heavy trash can interfere with proper operation of these depth control wheels, since ideally they should run on the ground, or over a thin, preferably consistent, layer of trash so that the proper depth is maintained. Where trash is thick and uneven, the depth control wheel rides up and over the trash, drawing the furrow opener out of the ground and reducing seed depth to less than optimum, often in fact leaving seed on top of the ground.
Prior art has been addressed to devices for clearing trash from the path of a furrow opener to improve performance. U.S. Pat. No. 4,785,890 to Martin, U.S. Pat. No. 5,346,020 to Bassett, U.S. Pat. No. 5,497,836 to Groff, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,878,678 to Stephens et al. disclose trash clearing apparatuses that include a pair of spoked or toothed trash clearing finger wheels in a V orientation in front of a furrow opener, such that the centers of the finger wheels are substantially located on a line parallel to the operating travel direction. The finger wheels clear trash in each direction from in front of the opener. Where such V oriented finger wheels are used in a narrow row spacing, with the furrow openers close together, the trash thrown away from the path by one of the finger wheels of the V apparatus is thrown against trash being thrown the opposite way by the opposite finger wheels of the adjacent V apparatus. The trash is thus not thrown clear since the two streams of trash meet.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,970,892 to Wendling et al. shows a single similar wheel, essentially one half of the V apparatus of the ""678 patent to Stephens et al. The single wheel clears sufficient area to improve the performance of the disc. The clearing wheel is oriented to throw trash to the side of the row opposite the depth control wheel, and does not therefore clear trash from the path of the depth control wheel.
Trash clearing finger wheels are well known in a variety of types, as disclosed for example in U.S. Pat. No. 5,346,020 to Bassett, U.S. Pat. No. 5,497,836 to Groff, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,878,678 to Stephens et al.
These finger wheel clearing apparatuses should be maintained in proper relation to the ground without entering the ground and thereby increasing draft and stress on the apparatus, as well as causing excessive soil to be thrown with the trash.
It is the object of the present invention to provide an improved apparatus for clearing trash from a furrow opener path that is suitable for narrow row spacings. It is a further object of the invention to provide such an apparatus that can incorporate a furrow opening disc for applying agricultural product.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a paired row seeding implement where such a trash clearing apparatus clears trash from the path of two furrow openers.
It is a further object of the invention to provide an improved method of clearing trash suitable for use with narrow row spacings.
The invention provides, in one aspect, an apparatus for clearing trash from a furrow opener path, the trash clearing apparatus adapted for attachment to an implement for movement along the ground in an operating travel direction ahead of a furrow opener. The apparatus comprises a front finger wheel rotatably mounted to the apparatus and oriented to move trash from a first path to a first side of the apparatus and a rear finger wheel rotatably mounted to the apparatus behind the front finger wheel and oriented to move trash from a second path to an opposite second side of the apparatus. The front and rear finger wheels are mounted such that the first and second paths are adjacent to each other, and such that the separation along the operating travel direction between the front and rear finger wheels is such that a first trash stream thrown by the front finger wheel does not meet a second trash stream thrown by the rear finger wheel of an adjacent trash clearing apparatus. A depth control wheel is rotatably mounted to the apparatus such that the depth control wheel rolls along the ground on the first path cleared by the front finger wheel. The depth control wheel is operative to maintain bottom edges of the front and rear finger wheels at a substantially constant vertical position relative to the ground. An adjusting mechanism is operative to adjust a vertical position of the depth control wheel with respect to at least one of the front and rear finger wheels.
The front finger wheel is typically rotatably mounted to the apparatus about a first axis, the first axis oriented at a first angle to the operating travel direction such that a leading side of the front finger wheel is ahead of a trailing side, and at a first angle from the horizontal such that the leading side is below the trailing side thereof whereby trash moved from a first path by the front finger wheel moves to a first side of the apparatus. Similarly the rear finger wheel is typically rotatably mounted to the apparatus behind the front finger wheel about a second axis, the second axis oriented at a second angle to the operating travel direction such that a leading side of the rear finger wheel is ahead of a trailing side, and at a second angle from the horizontal such that the leading side is below the trailing side thereof whereby trash moved from a second path by the rear finger wheel moves to an opposite second side of the apparatus.
In a second aspect the invention provides A paired row seeding implement attachable to a towing vehicle for movement along the ground in an operating travel direction, the implement comprising: a trash clearing apparatus attached to the implement, the apparatus comprising a front finger wheel rotatably mounted to the and oriented to move trash from a first path to a first side of the apparatus, a rear finger wheel rotatably mounted to the apparatus behind the front finger wheel and oriented to move trash from a second path to an opposite second side of the apparatus, wherein the front and rear finger wheels are mounted such that the first and second paths are adjacent to each other and such that the separation along the operating travel direction between the front and rear finger wheels is such that a first trash stream thrown by the front finger wheel does not meet a second trash stream thrown by the rear finger wheel of an adjacent trash clearing apparatus, a depth control wheel rotatably mounted to the apparatus such that the depth control wheel rolls along the ground on the first path cleared by the front finger wheel, the depth control wheel operative to maintain bottom edges of the front and rear finger wheels at a substantially constant vertical position relative to the ground by; and an adjusting mechanism operative to adjust a vertical position of the depth control wheel with respect to at least one of the front and rear finger wheels. A first furrow opening tool is attached to the implement behind the trash clearing apparatus and oriented to follow the first path, and a second furrow opening tool is attached to the implement behind the trash clearing apparatus and oriented to follow the second path. A furrow depth control device mounted at a fixed vertical position relative to at least one furrow opening tool, and oriented to move along the ground between the first and second furrow opening tools and maintain the first and second furrow opening tools at a substantially constant vertical position with respect to the ground.
The apparatus clears two closely adjacent paths, with little trash left between the paths. A furrow opening implement can incorporate a following furrow opener in each path, with a depth control wheel running on the cleared ground of the paths. One depth control device, such as a wheel or skid plate can control the depth of two adjacent openers.
The invention also provides, in a third aspect, a method of clearing trash from a plurality of adjacent paired furrow opener paths of a furrow opening implement, each paired furrow opener path comprising a first path and an adjacent second path. The method comprises with a first front finger wheel, throwing first trash from the first path towards a first side of the paired furrow opener path, relative to an operating travel direction of the implement; after the first trash has substantially landed on the ground, with a rear finger wheel throwing second trash from the second path towards a second side of the paired furrow opener path, relative to the operating travel direction of the implement, and on top of first trash thrown by an adjacent second front finger wheel; maintaining bottom edges of the front and rear finger wheels at a substantially constant vertical position relative to the ground with a depth control wheel oriented to roll along the ground on the first path cleared by the front finger wheel.
The front finger wheel moves trash to one side, and the rear finger wheel moves adjacent trash to the opposite side. In a narrow row spacing, a plurality of front finger wheels moves first trash from a first path in one direction, while the following plurality of rear finger wheels moves second trash in the opposite direction. The first trash has landed on the ground by the time the second trash is moved so that the second trash lands on top of the first trash. Conventionally, the trash is moved both directions at once by a V oriented pair of finger wheels such that the trash moving in one direction hits the trash moving in the opposite direction, resulting in a poor spread, and spill back onto the cleared path.
The bottom edges of the front and rear finger wheels may be maintained at a substantially constant vertical position relative to the ground by one depth control wheel rolling along the ground on the first path cleared by the front finger wheel, and beside or somewhat ahead of the rear finger wheel. The depth control wheel runs on cleared ground of the first path and so maintains the proper relation of the apparatus with the ground, as it does not ride up and down over trash accumulations. Depending on the attachment to the implement, as the apparatus moves along the ground the front and rear finger wheels may move somewhat relative to the ground, however such a system will often provide satisfactory service.
More precise vertical positioning of the front and rear finger wheels may be provided. The front and rear finger wheels may be oriented such that bottom edges thereof are on a horizontal plane as they move up and down with the terrain and a depth control wheel is located between them in a good location to maintain the finger wheels at the proper vertical location relative to the ground.
Alternatively a depth control wheel may be provided adjacent to each finger wheel to control the vertical position thereof. Both depth control wheels run on the cleared ground of the first path, and so are not moving up and down over uncleared trash.
More precise control of the vertical position of the finger wheels reduces excessive stress and soil throw.
The addition of a furrow opening disc closely behind the front finger wheel provides the advantage, well known in the art, of cutting straws that are held under tension by the finger wheel as it pulls the trash away from the path of the furrow opening disc. Agricultural product such as seed or fertilizer can also be placed in the soil.